Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations

Democratic lawmakers and advocates for Medicaid enrollees question how the state is handling the program and why AmeriHealth, one of three companies hired by the state, is leaving. In other Medicaid news, federal officials say Ohio owes $29.5 million for improper payments and the Oregon governor seeks to get some overpayments back.

Des Moines Register:
DHS Director Criticized For AmeriHealth's Departure From Iowa Medicaid Program
A Democratic legislator berated Iowa’s human-services director Tuesday for turmoil in the state’s Medicaid system, including the abrupt departure of one of three private companies hired to run the program. “I have no confidence in your ability to manage anything at this point,” Sen. Joe Bolkcom told Jerry Foxhoven, director of the Iowa Department of Human Services, during a Statehouse meeting. Bolkcom, D-Iowa City, demanded to know why AmeriHealth Caritas was leaving the Iowa market, with just 30 days’ notice. (Leys, 11/7)

Iowa Public Radio:
Bitter Debate Over Shift In Care For Severely Disabled Iowans
Advocates for Iowa’s most severely disabled patients spoke out Tuesday about recent changes in the state’s privately-managed Medicaid program now in its second year. One of the for-profit companies managing the program has pulled out, and critics say the neediest patients may be harmed by having to change case managers and providers over a period of one month. (Russell, 11/7)

Columbus Dispatch:
Feds Say Ohio Owes $29.5M For Improper Medicaid Bonuses
Federal investigators say Ohio owes the federal government $29.5 million for improper bonus payments rewarding the state’s effort to sign up children for Medicaid. Ohio received $64.5 million in bonus payments from 2010-13, but the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Office of Inspector General says the state overstated its enrollment by including children that did not qualify. (Siegel, 11/7)

The Oregonian:
Kate Brown Changes Course, Demands $64 Million Medicaid Repayment
Gov. Kate Brown on Tuesday directed the state's top health official to seek repayment of $64 million in Medicaid money that the state wrongly sent to health care organizations. The governor sent the letter a day after her likely Republican opponent in the 2018 election, Rep. Knute Buehler of Bend, wrote his own letter calling for the governor to recoup the money. (Borrud and Manning, 11/7)

And states still wait word from Washington about funding for the Children's Health Insurance Program.

Cleveland Plain Dealer:
Healthcare for 200,000 Ohio Children Waits For Funding Caught In Political Web
Federal funding for a program that provides health insurance coverage to roughly 200,000 children in Ohio and 9 million across the U.S. expired more than a month ago, and Congress still hasn't enacted legislation to restore funding. The Children's Health Insurance Program (CHIP) has historically enjoyed bipartisan support but has been entangled in a political debate over how to fund the program since Sept. 30. (Christ, 11/8)

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